Congestion impacts and solutions have again been in the news over the past fortnight.
The Sydney Morning Herald reported on October 18 that a London-style congestion tax was ‘back on the table’ following a report by the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal calling, among other things, for a review into parking charges and road pricing to address congestion and pollution.
The SMH quoted a Government spokesman as saying nothing was being ruled in or out until completion of the state’s mini- Budget process.
The Herald also reported this week that an increase in the Harbour Bridge toll – the first since 2002 - may also be under consideration.
Meantime in Melbourne, today’s Herald Sun underscored the impact of congestion on key Melbourne’s roads. Quoting from VicRoads’ annual report, the Herald Sun reported the average speed in the evening peak was 37.4kmh, and 34.8 kmh in the morning peak. Road travel increased by 1.3 per cent and delays due to congestion by 3.3 per cent in the year, the paper said.
Conversely, the Herald Sun also reported this week that a quarter of all Victorians had been caught speeding in the past two years, with 10 per cent claiming to speed most or all of the time.
In other news, today’s Daily Telegraph, quoting an unnamed Government source, reported that one of NSW’s ‘big ticket’ infrastructure items – the $12b North West metro rail link – would not go ahead.
Both the South Australian and Western Australian governments have included important urban transport projects in their submissions to Infrastructure Australia.
SA Premier Mike Rann and Infrastructure Minister Patrick Conlon announced this week the inclusion of the North-South corridor – Darlington project – on their State’s list.
The Premier described the project as the next step in creating a non-stop north-south corridor for Adelaide. It would include construction of an underpass on South Road under Sturt Road and an extension of the Tonsley Rail line to the Flinders Medical Centre with the creation of a Flinders transport interchange station.
In WA, the new State Government has identified $3.8billion worth of strategic metropolitan and regional based projects that it says are essential for the future development of the State.
Among these, Premier Colin Barnett nominated road network improvements worth $525 million as part of the redevelopment of Perth Airport. The projects would be shared between the State and Federal governments.
They include:
Meantime, NSW Premier Nathan Rees has included a $4 billion CBD Metro rail line in his Government’s submission to Infrastructure Australia.
And the NRMA has lent its support to the reported $1 billion of AusLink 2 funding it says is being sought by the NSW Government for improvements to the Princes Highway.
NRMA President Alan Evans says the State should top up any Federal contribution with its own funds, ensuring the ongoing viability and maintenance of the South Coast's major arterial road.
The Hume Highway duplication project in southern NSW passed a major milestone this week with the opening of an eight-kilometre section of carriageway north of Holbrook.
Federal Minister for Infrastructure and Transport, Anthony Albanese, welcomed the opening of the section at Little Billabong and congratulated the Northern Hume Alliance for their commitment to the project.
The Northern Hume Alliance comprises the NSW RTA, Leighton Contractors, Maunsell AECOM, Coffey Partners and Snowy Mountains Engineering Corporation (SMEC), and is responsible for about 35 kilometres of the total 67 kilometres of duplication.
NSW Minster for Roads, Michael Daley, said traffic in both directions had been switched on to the new northbound carriageway, allowing work to start on the upgrade of the existing road, which would form the southbound lanes.
"Work on the Hume Highway duplication project started in October of last year and it's great to see major progress has already been made,” Mr Daley said.
"I'm pleased to report that the project is on track to be finished by the end of next year, delivering better conditions for communities and industries along this major freight route."
National Transport Commission (NTC) Chief Executive, Nick Dimopoulos, says the combination of targeted infrastructure investment, road pricing reform and urban planning around transport can deliver more sustainable cities and strengthen the national economy.
In a keynote address to the Future City Transport Summit in Sydney this week, Mr Dimopoulos said now is the right time for Australia to explore broad road pricing options through an independent inquiry.
“Put simply, we’ve got to do better with what (infrastructure) we already have,” he said.
“Charging a higher tariff at busy times is widely used for airline ticketing, mobile phone calls and going to the cinema. And it’s much easier to change prices to influence demand, than build new infrastructure.
“It’s about getting the (transport) system right so you can make informed personal choices about transport alternatives, and what’s important to you, without shifting the cost of your decisions onto others.”
Australia’s growing cities are increasingly important to the national economy. According to the Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics, the absence of measures to unclog urban roads will restrict the mobility of people and freight and cost the economy a forecast $20 billion a year by 2020.
“Slow and unreliable deliveries force distributors to bump-up their stock levels and lead-times, leading to higher freight costs,” he said. “If commuters are condemned to sitting in peak hour traffic for hours, there is a productivity and social price to pay.
“Urban transport efficiency is, therefore, a national problem for transport policy-makers.”
Commonwealth, state and territory transport ministers are now working with the National Transport Commission to restart the reform agenda and develop Australia’s first integrated National Transport Policy across all modes of transport – passenger and freight.
The creation of a Major Cities Unit within Infrastructure Australia is also a positive step.
Mr Dimopoulos said the next logical step – a national public transport policy, as part of the National Transport Policy – could deliver more integrated urban transport systems operating to population-based service standards.
Parsons Brinckerhoff is undertaking an assessment of the effects of climate on Australia’s infrastructure for the Federal Government’s Department of Climate Change.
The National Infrastructure Climate Change Adaptation Risk Assessment (NICARRA) will consider the challenges facing key infrastructure to 2070.
PB’s Climate Change Business Unit will provide an independent and rigorous report on the strengths and vulnerabilities of the nation’s significant infrastructure, and planned infrastructure, in transport, energy, water, communication, and buildings.
PB’s Project Director and National Technical Executive, Climate Change, Arek Sinanian, says the assessment is an urgent task for business and government.
“Key stakeholders in each infrastructure sector will take part in risk assessment workshops,” he says.
“PB’s final report will provide a basis for the Department of Climate Change and the Australian Government to implement solutions for prevention, adaptation and mitigation as urgently as possible.”
KPMG and CSIRO will assist PB with specific aspects of the study.
Maunsell AECOM has launched a new publication that draws on real case studies to deliver a practical, how-to guide on project alliancing.
Alliancing: a participant’s guide shares the experiences of Maunsell AECOM, combined with insights from asset owners, constructors, designers and facilitators.
“We wanted to produce a book that would contribute to the continuous improvement of our industry, answering all those alliancing-related questions that frequently get asked, but historically have only been answered from a theoretical perspective,” says Maunsell AECOM’s Director of Alliances and Sustainable Infrastructure, Richard Morwood.
Maunsell AECOM has worked in 24 alliances since the model was introduced to Australia in the early 1990s, including the Inner Northern Busway in Queensland, Lawrence Hargrave Drive in NSW, Southern Link in Victoria, and Roe Highway 7 in WA.
For more information on the new book, contact alliancing@maunsell.com. The Cystic Fibrosis Association of Queensland and the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation will each benefit from the publication of the book.
The following stories appear courtesy of World Highways.
Water solution for highway congestion
In the US moves are being made to reduce traffic congestion on the highway network by moving some heavy, non time-urgent freight, onto the country’s waterways. The federal government plans to develop its waterways by establishing a new national network of marine highways. This is intended to help move cargo across the country in order to cut congestion on some of the nation’s busiest highways.
The Marine Highways initiative calls for the selection and designation of key maritime inland and coastal maritime corridors as marine highways. These routes will be eligible for up to US$25 million in existing federal capital construction funds and ensures that these communities will continue to qualify for up to $1.7 billion in federal highway congestion mitigation and air quality (CMAQ) funds.
India's terrible road record
India accounts for 10% of the worlds 1.2 million annual road deaths, a two-day seminar on `Mobility and Safety in Road Transport' in New Delhi in early October was told. Union Minister of State for Road Transport and the Geneva-based International Road Federation organised the seminar. The IRF said the claim was based on the Ministry of Shipping, Road Transport and Highways 2006 statistics. These show 105,749 fatalities on India’s roads for that year.
For more road news from around the world, visit the World Highways website.
Submitted by Mark Bowmer on Friday October 31st 2008 12:39pm
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